2016 has been a year of shocking and heartbreaking deaths—and now we’ve lost Ron Glass. The veteran actor, best known for his Emmy-nominated role of DetectiveRon Harris in “Barney Miller” and Shepherd Derrial Book in “Firefly,” died at the age of 71.

“Ron was a private, gentle and caring man,” said Leavett. “He was an absolute delight to watch on screen. Words cannot adequately express my sorrow.”

The 71-year-old was born in Indiana and studied drama and literature at the University of Evansville. Later on, he began his career in Hollywood in the early 70s with guest roles on episodes of “Sanford and Son,” “Hawaii Five-O” and “All in the Family.” A few years later, he nabbed his breakout role in 1975 on the police comedy “Barney Miller,” which earned Glass a Primetime Emmy nomination in 1982 in the supporting actor category.

And while over the years Glass had guest roles in other hit shows such as “Friends,” “The Twilight Zone,” “Family Matters” and “Murder, She Wrote,” he became a beloved staple in the sci-fi world on Joss Whedon’s 2002 cult classic show “Firefly” and accompanying 2005 film “Serenity.” In 2014, Glass also was a guest star on “CSI” and “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D,” Variety noted.

Information on funeral services and survivors was not made available to the press.

Glass’ colleagues and fans took to Twitter to express their sadness of his passing: